FEATURE:
Second Spin
Brandy - Never Say Never
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WITH a raft of singles…
released between 1998 and 2000, it is clear that there was a big push behind Brandy’s second studio album, Never Say Never. I would say that, when it was released on 4th June, 1998, there was this fertile and exciting R&B scene. Together with a growing wave of Electronic and Trip-Hop albums, 1998 was a really interesting year for music. Following her promising debut, Brandy (1994), there must have been a lot of people wondering whether Brandy would return - four years between albums is quite a gap I guess. Brandy is still making music today. Her seventh studio album, B7, was released in 2020. It is a great work. I particularly love Never Say Never. It does not get the credit it deserves. Maybe the weight and attention its biggest single, The Boy Is Mine (a duet with Monica), means people take against the album. That, or people compare the other songs unfavourably. As I said, there were a lot of singles put out for the album. With a huge writing and production team behind the album (including contributions from Diane Warren and Bryan Adams among others), there are a lot of different voices on the album. It is a bit odd Brandy chose to cover Adams’ (Everything I Do) I Do It for You and end the album like that! That said, the singles are assorted so that Never Say Never is not top or bottom-heavy. Stunning songs like Angel in Disguise, Never Say Never and U Don't Know Me (Like U Used To) mean we get this brilliant album with so many highs. It is a shame that there was a lot of mixed reviews in 1998. There is a lot of energy and effusiveness from Brandy.
One cannot call Never Say Never a flat or boring album. Even though there are some more romantic and slushy-ish moments, the abiding feeling is this intense and uplifting album full of great vocal performances and hooks. Some reviews pitched Brandy between artists such as Mariah Carey and Mary J. Blige. Brandy possessed that mix of streetwise edge and sweetness. One gets this artist who has punch and cut - through there is plenty of warmth and heart. I think that Never Say Never is one of the more underrated albums from the 1990s. Again, this is a case of an album selling and charting well – though one where critics were not fully on board. Never Say Never made Brandy an international name. It debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 160,000 copies in its first week. It peaked at number two the following week, remaining within the chart's top twenty for twenty-eight weeks. It is amazing that eight of the album's sixteen songs were chosen as singles! Perhaps there was a sense of fatigue from some who were reviewing it after many of the singles were released. Regardless, Never Say Never has been certified quintuple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). It has gone on to sell in excess of sixteen million copies worldwide.
1998 was such an exciting and eclectic year for music. Alongside Madonna’s Ray of Light was Lauryn Hill’s The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, Air’s Moon Safari and Massive Attacks Mezzanine, Brandy put Never Say Never into the world. There were so many different genres being elevated and experimented with. Despite Never Say Never being accessible and commercial, there is plenty of individuality and original moments that Brandy injects. She is not mimicking any other artist. Instead, even with a host of producers, she released an album that is very much her vision and D.N.A. It is bemusing there are very few out-and-out positive reviews. Most are fairly positive, with a mild undertow of disappointment. This is what AllMusic said in their review:
“Shortly after the release of her eponymous debut in 1995, Brandy became a star. Not only did the album sell well, but she starred on UPN's Moesha and Disney's made-for-TV Cinderella, all before she released her second album, Never Say Never, in 1998. Needless to say, there was much more riding on the second record than the debut and, fortunately, she follows through with Never Say Never, delivering an album that rivals her first. Brandy wisely decides to find a middle ground between Mariah Carey and Mary J. Blige -- it's adult contemporary with a slight streetwise edge. As with most adult contemporary albums, the record is bogged down by some filler, but Brandy's delivery has improved and her subdued vocals can make mediocre material sound convincing. Still, what makes Never Say Never a winning record is the quality songs and production. The smooth Monica duet "The Boy Is Mine" and the tripped-out "Top of the World" (which features a rap from Mase) are two examples of what Brandy can achieve when everything's in the right place, and they help make Never Say Never a more adventurous record than her debut”.
This interview from the BBC is a little wamrwer and more in-depth. I can understand why Never Say Never sold so many copies. It definitely captured a mood at the time. It produced so many instantly memorable songs:
“Selling more than 14 million albums worldwide, singer and actress Brandy Norwood’s second album established her as a late 90s superstar. Following up 1994’s eponymous debut, Never Say Never was a collection of smooth, mid-paced jams, which very much provide a snapshot of commercial RnB from the era.
Never Say Never is dominated by its second single, The Boy Is Mine, a duet with the then-white-hot soul diva Monica. Much was made of the duo having an alleged ‘beef’, whereas in reality they had never even met. It was thought appropriate to capitalise on their individual success and supposedly collective notoriety. With a more than knowing wink to Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney’s duet The Girl Is Mine from 1982, the track, like most of the album, sounds effortless. The single topped the US charts for an extraordinary 13 weeks in summer 1998.
Never Say Never could easily have been eclipsed by the scale of its lead single’s success, but its quality threshold, in the main, is set high. The title track is an exemplary piece of RnB, while the opener, Angel in Disguise, is minor-key, icy soul, rendered emotional by Brandy’s gospel-trained voice. The infectious UK number two single, Top of the World featuring Ma$e, highlights Brandy’s uniquely affecting yet somehow dispassionate style over its shuddering minimalist groove.
Working with session players the calibre of bassist Nathan East and David Foster on keyboards, Never Say Never was aimed at the widest audience possible. This was most evident on Have You Ever?, her second US number one. Written by Dianne Warren, the ballad sounds a little too formulaic and off-the-peg, aimed for the summit of the hit parade. The other strange choice is the verging-on-karaoke version of (Everything I Do) I Do It for You which, by closing the album, serves almost to undermine its triumph.
Ultimately, Never Say Never is the epitome of a mixed bag. However, given that a lot of RnB in the late 90s sounds like an ornate musical box revolving, the album is an intelligent brew that deviates sufficiently from that template and plays to Brandy and executive producer Rodney Jerkins’s considerable strengths”.
Blending Soul, Adult Contemporary, R&B and Pop into an album that is, at once white-hot and intense and the next moment seductive and cooler, there is plenty to enjoy. I do feel like we should give Brandy’s second studio album a second spin. One of the very best albums of 1998, one can immerse themselves in Never Say Never. Although The Boy Is Mine is the obvious highlight, I do feel there are other terrific tracks on the album (not necessarily singles) that you will come back to after the first listen. In any case, spend some time today with…
THE amazing Never Say Never.